


Ulterior Motives

by spiidercider



Category: No Fandom, Original Work
Genre: F/F, Idk how to tag things, Magic, Modern Magic, Modern Witchcraft, No Fandom - Freeform, OC's - Freeform, Original work - Freeform, gay girls, gay girls of color, gay girls what more do you need, gay poc, witchcraft is real
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-16
Updated: 2017-03-21
Packaged: 2018-10-05 21:50:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,708
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10317728
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spiidercider/pseuds/spiidercider
Summary: Reya is a lesbian born and raised in Texas by a single white mother. It was absolute hell. At the first chance she got, Reya moved to Southern California to get a degree in Zoology. Now she lives in a little apartment with her roommate Carinna and her cat Monty. When some classmates talk about a witch moving into town, opening up her own shop, Reya's curiosity is piqued. The witch she meets, Toralei, immediately captures her attention and heart, and they make a deal with each other. But will it really just be that one deal, or do both of them have something else that they want?





	1. How Many Times Have I Told You? I'm Gay.

“Mom, how many times have I told you? I’m gay. I’m not flying all the way over to Texas to meet some guy you found to marry him, have kids, and live on a farm in the middle of nowhere!”

            “Yes, dear, you’ve told me, but haven’t you thought that this is just a phase? You are in college, you know. Young women experiment just to ease their curiosity, then settle into a nice, normal marriage! I even experimented a little when I was your age! Granted, it was awful and I’ll never do it again, but I had that phase back then and you’re having it now!”

            Oh lord, there she goes again. Reya’s mother, Jenifer, loves to play that pseudo-modern parent role where of course she took part in wild teenager activities to relate to her daughter. After she reminded Reya of one insignificant memory, she then tried to sweetly and discreetly push her back into the cookie cutter shape she planned since Reya was born. Jenifer’s vision of Reya was a sweet typical Texan girl who married a white rancher at age 20 and had kids by 22, making her a stay-at-home mom until she retired to some all-white retirement home. Little did she know that Reya would turn out as nothing less than the exact opposite of her mother’s dreams. And, as cliché as it sounds:

            “It’s not a phase, mom. I told you I was gay before I even left for college!” Granted, it was the day of graduation (which wasn’t the most fun celebratory dinner), but still, it mattered.

            “Can’t you at least try? For me? I know it’ll be so difficult for you to find a nice man with your… situation, so I just thought-“

            “Please don’t remind me. I have to live with it, thank you very much. Ugh, you’ll never get it, and I won’t expect you, too. I just want you to stop bugging me about it! Whatever, I have to get ready for class, bye.”

            Reya didn’t have the patience or the want to wait for her mother to say goodbye before hanging up and tossing the phone on her twin-size bed. It was only eight in the morning and her bad mood was already set for the day. Her first class of the day wouldn’t start for another two hours, so maybe a nice shower and comforting clothes would even her out by the time she had to leave.

            Carrina, her roommate, was already gone, probably still regretting taking such early classes. At least that meant that Reya didn’t have to tiptoe around trying not to wake her usually exhausted friend. They both attended the same college, and it was Carrina who helped Reya find her way through the campus, and their friendship grew slowly over the year, as Reya wasn’t the quickest to open up to others.

            On her way to the shower, Reya picked up a plain light blue tank top, along with pair of boy short underwear, a sports bra, and black shorts and tossed them in the bathroom. It’s not like she was going to work out after class, but that was what felt comfortable for her at the moment. Even though she resided in California and lived in Texas almost all of her life, she still had a disdain for bright sunshine and radiating heat. She appreciated the energy that the sun gave the earth (and cursed the government for not switching to solar power, or renewable energy in general), but she couldn’t stand what it did to her body. The sweat, the exhaustion, it was all too heavy on her mind and body, and she always felt gross whenever she stepped outside.

            Either way, after everything was all said and done (shower completed, legs shaved, dark brown hair tied up, etc.), it was just nine a.m. and she still wouldn’t have to leave for almost 45 minutes. Reya settled on her tiny bed and picked her phone back up. The first thing she tapped on was Twitter, which was either full of memes, politics, or the short opinions of people she didn’t care about. There were also a few local news stations she followed, just to keep in touch with what was going on around her. Only one things seemed to really catch her attention: someone from her morning class posted something about witches.

            Witches? Weren’t they kind of old news? If she remembered correctly, weren’t witches all over the media like, 20 years ago? Originally they were banned from entering America, some shitty executive order that kept them out until around 15 years ago. Even in this liberal area, Reya had never seen or heard of any witches around here. At least, until this tweet. Of course, the tweet was about wanting to trash her place to force her to move her store out of here, but that was such a backwards way of thinking. She knew 140 characters weren’t enough to tell this guy off, so she settled to put her phone down and relax herself.

Just in time, a quiet meow turned Reya’s attention from the irritation spreading through her, and onto Monty, the 1 year old brownish-black Norwegian Forest Cat Reya had adopted several months ago. The young boy climbed his way onto the bed and meowed again, wanting some early morning attention, which she gladly gave. Having just woken up from his own slumber, Monty yawned and settled to relax on his owner.

            “Awh, honey. You know I have to leave soon,” She cooed. Well, it wouldn’t have been the first time she arrived late because she couldn’t muster up the energy to leave her darling kitty so early in the morning. But, either way, education, unfortunately, had to come first.

            Reluctantly, Reya picked the fluffball of a cat up and gently placed him on her pillow, leaning down to press a gentle kiss on his furry forehead before waving goodbye, picking up her bookbag, keys, and heading out.

 

* * *

 

 

            The slightly disheveled brunette arrived 3 minutes before she would’ve been thought of as ‘late’. Although, being technically early didn’t stop all those pairs of eyes from boring holes into Reya. This was her second year here, and people still couldn’t get over the fact that she was missing an arm. It’s not like it was a big deal anymore, at least to Reya. She’d been one arm short since she was a child. There wasn’t even an incredible, heroic or horror filled story to go along with it. The simple reality was that she’d gotten into a car accident, and she and the car flipped in a way where it landed on her right arm, no hope of reattachment like with a finger. It’s not like she’d try and hide it, though. C’mon, they’re all in Southern California and it was almost summertime, she wasn’t going to try and wear a long sleeve or a sweatshirt to make her classmates feel better. Reya hardly cared about them, anyway. She already wasn’t one for making friends easily or starting up conversations, but from what she’d heard of their conversations, she didn’t want to be friends with them, anyway.

            “Dude, I saw your tweet from this morning!”

            Oh god, would Reya have to sit and listen to two frat boys dehumanize women and just be generally sexist and xenophobic again?

            “So, like, is it really true?”

            A black-haired girl sitting in their area popped into the conversation. She seemed less judgmental and more curious, so that was refreshing, although Reya couldn’t get her hopes up too high, because she still chose to hang out with those two jerks.

            “Yeah it’s true! I saw it on my way here! It’s only like, 10 minutes away! Got a stupid little open sign on it and everything.”

            “What do witches even do?”

            “C’mon, you haven’t heard the stories?” The first guy, who asked the initial question, started to get a serious and creepy look on his face. He continued, “All witches are infertile women, and they like to lure teenage girls to their shop, like they’re lesbian succubae, promising ‘em to fulfill their greatest desires, but only in exchange for…”

            At this point, the girl looked very uneasy, spooked, even. She seemed to be uncomfortable with where he was going with this. The man stood up and crept along over to the girl, building up his suspense, before lunging towards her.

            “Your first-born child! To gobble it up as their only food source!”

            The girl squealed, instinctively clutching her stomach. It seemed she was sentimental, especially about kids. Maybe she wanted some in the future. Either way, she was not laughing with his ‘joke’, but he was pretty much dying over his ‘comedy’.

            “That’s not funny, Derek! You know I love babies!” Yep, Reya’s thoughts were right. She would assume that she was good at reading people, but that girl was just too easy.

            But, Reya had to admit, she was intrigued about what they were talking about. Not the ‘eating babies’ part, but the witchy, lesbian succubus part. She’d never met a witch before, because most parts of Texas still to this day refuse to let witches live there (though Reya couldn’t see why they’d try and live there in the first place).

            As class was just beginning, Reya’s thoughts were elsewhere. Okay, what all did she know about witches?

            Witches are all women, born with the natural gift of spellcasting, conjuring, enchanting, etc. People couldn’t just ‘study up’ and become a witch. Some girls chose to steer clear of their ‘destiny’ while others thought of it as a rite of passage, their duty, to be a witch. Some chose to take the middle road, not denying themselves, but keeping a low profile for protection. Just like back during the Salem Witch Trials, witch hunts were very real, and very horrifying. Although obviously they were made more subtle, in passive-aggressive tones, xenophobia, etc. Women were getting murdered every day, even just being suspected of being a witch.

            Reya sighed at her most recent thoughts. Society: one step forward, too many steps back.

            The rest of the class went on in a daze. She would definitely have to look back at the PowerPoint the professor had tonight when she got home. When all her supplies were collected into her bookbag, she made her way out in the depressing weight of  the sunshine and heat. It was now afternoon, and much hotter than when she arrived. As Reya wiped an already forming bead of sweat from her forehead, she noticed the guy from class walking opposite of her.

            Wow, just ten minutes that way, there was a real witch, with a real witch shop and everything. It was surreal. She wanted to turn on her heel and follow him, but decided against it at the last minute, deciding that a quick dip in her apartment’s pool would be much better now. One day though, she thought to herself as she made haste home, she would go in there, see what it was like.


	2. (2): "Isn't she beautiful?"

“C’mon, Rey, he’ll be here any minute! And you know how he is with being on schedule!” Reya, just like her roommate, was scrambling to get ready. Why did it seem like her alarm had a mind of its own when it came to when to be loud or quiet? Carrina’s little brother and his ‘friend’ would be at their apartment soon so that they could all go to an animal sanctuary a little while a ways from where they lived.   
Rey was hopping around, disheveled hair bouncing around everywhere as she tried to put on a pair of shorts as she made her way to her hairbrush. Carrina, on the other hand, was much more efficient with her limited amount of time. Sometimes Reya was jealous of the other’s job, but Carrina made it a personal mission of hers to remind the younger girl that no, she didn’t wish she had this job. Monty was lying on Reya’s bed, perfectly content watching his owner scramble to get dressed, when he didn’t have a care in the world. Reya went out of her way to glare at him as she quickly brushed her hair, painfully tugging out the knots that remained from the wild way she seemed to have slept. Hey, it was hard to get dressed in a hurry with her predicament.   
Only a few more seconds passed before the rapid knocking started, turning into a pattern to let Rey and Carrina know it was really her little brother, Isaiah.  
“I got it, I got it!” Carrina waved off Reya to let her finish pulling up her pants just before she got to the door. When she opened it, she saw her mother, Jacinda, who could easily pass for Carrina’s older sister, standing at the door. Just a few feet underneath her were two other black boys, one being Isaiah.  
“I love you mom, bye! C’mon in, Travis!” Isaiah grabbed the other boy’s hand and made a beeline for Monty, who was surprised at the loud noises, but calmed down a bit when he saw who was causing the commotion.  
Carrina’s mother let out a small sigh as she watched the two boys run off, before giving Carrina a hug.  
“Thank you for taking your brother out, just watch him carefully. You know that boy will dart off the moment he sees something he likes.” A small eye roll followed her words as multiple memories of her losing her son in too many public places flashed through her mind.  
“Don’t worry, mom. You know Rey keeps his brain too busy to run off.” Carrina copied her mother’s eye roll, making them look even more similar, as she wondered how many ‘fun facts’ she’d have to hear today.  
Inside the small apartment, Reya sat on her bed, brushing her hair as she watched the two boys play with Monty, who was now extra energetic since he knew these boys would play with him. Travis, who the girls knew as Isaiah’s ‘little boyfriend from school’, seemed a little troubled by something. He kept looking over at Rey every few seconds, and it wasn’t hard for her to notice. Kids were pretty easy to read.  
“You’re curious, aren’t you?” Travis was taken aback, surprised that he’d gotten caught staring, as if he’d never been caught doing anything of the sort in his entire life. A little embarrassed, he nodded his head. Rey had a warm and knowing smile resting on her face. It’s okay, Isaiah was curious too when they’d first met, but he was a lot more open and out loud with his questions, much to his family’s dismay.   
“It’s okay, I’m used to telling this story by now. It’s not as fun as I wished it was. Just a car accident when I was younger, nothing major.” As she spoke, her left hand grazed over where her right hand should have been. Her right side simply lacked a hand and forearm, but at least it was smooth and not horribly scarred. It was pretty difficult to hide, especially where she lived, where it could be tank top weather all year round. She still wasn’t used to being stared at. Even before her accident she had anxiety towards all the people around her, her accident only heightened that.  
Travis simply nodded, unsure of what to say. Rey just retained the smile she had to try and make him less uncomfortable, because god knows she was way more uncomfortable than he was.   
“C’mon, c’mon, we gotta go! I can’t be late!” Isaiah was the one to break through the bit of awkward that started to fill the room. Again, he reached for Travis’s hand and pulled him off the bed and out the door.  
“Hey now, get back here! I’m not having you run off anywhere this time!” Carrina huffed before she ran out after them, leaving Reya and Monty. Reya gave a small pat to Monty and let out a soft laugh at Carrina’s little brother. It was like he was her own little brother, too, and she loved hanging out with him. A part of her always wanted younger siblings, but part of her was afraid that, without Reya being around enough because of school, they’d turn out just like her mother. If that happened, she would probably just eternally wish to be an only child.  
“Bye, Monty. Stay safe and don’t mess up the place, please?” The woman got a simple meow in reply as she walked out the door, locking it before she finally made her way down to the car with the rest of the group.

“Another one! Another one!” Isaiah couldn’t stop squirming in his seat, bouncing up and down like a mad man. Travis just looked on, the most adorable smile on his face watching the other. Reya, from the passenger seat, turned around to look at him.  
“C’mon, if I keep telling you things on the ride there, I’ll be out of material by the time we even get there!” By ‘material’ Rey just means her little fun facts about the animals that they’re going to see, which is mainly marine mammals this time. Isaiah let out a small groan, crossing his arms, but he accepted her rejection, anyway.   
“Don’t worry. Just a few more minutes, Isaiah. We’re almost there.” Rey cooed, trying to bring his mood back up, but his face was still twisted into a sour look. Reya just rolled her eyes before clearing her throat.  
“Isaiah. Did you know that naturally, sea lions only have two predators? Killer whales and sharks. Yet, they’re still protected by the endangered species act. Now why would that be?” The boy’s eyes lit up as he gained new animal knowledge. You could practically see the gears turning in his head as he thought of an answer for her question.  
“Because.. of people?” He wasn’t sure exactly what people did to sea lions, but he already knew that humans weren’t the kindest of creatures on the planet.  
Exactly right! People hunt sea lions because they think that they’re messing with the fish that they catch. People don’t eat sea lions, they just wanted them out of the way.” Travis listened in, interested in whatever they were talking about. He didn’t know if they’d talked about this beforehand, but he was happy that his boyfriend was so inquisitive and eager to learn things.  
“But don’t fret! It’s currently being debated on whether to take them off the list or not, but not for bad reasons! The population has been increasing very steadily since the 1940’s, so their numbers are getting a lot better than when they were first put on the list!” Isaiah looked over to Travis and showed him a cheesy smile.  
“Rey’s so smart, isn’t she?” He was very proud of his pseudo-sister, and was pretty motivated by her, because everyone he knew loved animals, but they only wanted to be vets, but Rey was doing something he’d never thought possible. Travis smiled back at him and nodded. Isaiah loved Rey so much, and he was liking her, too.

“Look at them! Look at their noses! Look at their flippers!” It was like he was in a candy store. Reya couldn’t help but gush like a proud parent at Isaiah, which made Carrina laugh at the both of them. Carrina was at the end of the group, where Isaiah was first, with Travis short behind him, and Reya right behind him. God, she felt like a grandma watching all of these children run around, Rey included. Usually she just pretended she was just ‘too mature for this childish nonsense’ to make Rey laugh, but she was generally pretty modest with her emotion showing.   
“You be careful now, don’t run off too far ahead!” Carrina yelled from a few feet behind all of them, but Rey just waved at her in dismissal.  
“Psh, don’t worry, I got ‘em.” Yeah, as if she’d be held totally responsible by Carrina’s mom if they got lost or hurt. Even so, Carrina trusted Rey with a lot, and she just mimicked Rey’s hand wave in mockery, sticking her tongue out at her. The younger woman snorted out a laugh before she turned back to the boys, making sure they weren’t out of sight.   
Isaiah settled on gazing into the sea lion tank, where three girls and two boys were held. The discussion earlier on in the car stuck in Isaiah’s head, so he absolutely had to stop and connect with the marine mammals. Reya sat on a ledge beside them, side resting against the glass as the smallest sea lion, a female apparently named Stella, swam by. The trio of children (one at heart) waved at the lady as she passed on by. As Rey’s gaze followed the sea lion, she felt the presence of someone stand on the opposite side of her. Assuming it was Carrina, catching up super late, Rey turned over, greeting her.  
“Hey slowpoke, what took you s-” Oh, that wasn’t Carrina. She was as far from Carrina’s appearance as she could be. First off, she was quite a few inches shorter than Carrina, even shorter than Rey herself. Her hair was the second thing she noticed. Instead of the dark color she expected, she was currently looking at a soft pink color, reminiscent of cotton candy that you’d get at the fair. Despite her skin tone being darker than Reya’s, she also had a small dusting of freckles on her face and shoulders, exposed by the off the shoulder dress she wore. In one word, this stranger was captivating. Reya couldn’t help but stare, locking her light brown eyes with the stranger’s darker brown ones.  
As they stared at each other, the same sea lion made her rounds again, this time swimming with graceful twirling maneuvers, and Isaiah let out a longing sigh.  
“Isn’t she beautiful?” He asked aloud, more so stating his own thoughts of the sea lion in the form of a question rather than asking it. Keeping the contact with the stranger, Reya unknowingly replied aloud,  
“She certainly is.”


End file.
